Land Sustainable Development Research Articles

Methodology of integrated land and water resources management

The problem of creating a methodology for integrated management of land and water resources as one of the important components of the methodology of sustainable development is considered. The existing methodological approaches to integrated land and water resources management are analyzed and their main shortcomings are revealed. The methodology of integrated land and water resources management is based on contour-reclamation and functional-cost management principles. Analogs of the first, contour-ameliorative, principle are chosen the basic provisions of contour-ameliorative agriculture and the basin principle of water resources management. This principle consists of the contour principle, according to which integrated land management is carried out in the contours of certain land plots, and water resources – in the contours of river basins or sub-basins, and reclamation principle, according to which integrated management is carried out by developing and implementing measures to improve social, environmental and economic indicators of land and water use, using the term "reclamation" in a broader sense (Latin melioratio – improvement). The functional-cost principle is chosen as the main principle of the methodology of integrated resource management. The foundations of scientific and methodological tools of integrated management of land and water resources in the form of algorithms of local, zonal and regional integrated management of land and water resources are laid. The obtained research results are recommended for research institutions, design and environmental organizations, as well as specialists who deal with the problem of identifying and implementing strategic priorities for sustainable development of land and water resources.

Hydrological Responses of Watershed to Historical and Future Land Use Land Cover Change Dynamics of Nashe Watershed, Ethiopia

Land use land cover (LULC) change is the crucial driving force that affects the hydrological processes of a watershed. The changes of LULC have an important influence and are the main factor for monitoring the water balances. The assessment of LULC change is indispensable for sustainable development of land and water resources. Understanding the watershed responses to environmental changes and impacts of LULC classes on hydrological components is vigorous for planning water resources, land resource utilization, and hydrological balance sustaining. In this study, LULC effects on hydrological parameters of the Nashe watershed, Blue Nile River Basin are investigated. For this, historical and future LULC change scenarios in the Nashe watershed are implemented into a calibrated Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) model. Five LULC scenarios have been developed that represent baseline, current, and future periods corresponding to the map of 1990, 2005, 2019, 2035, and 2050. The predicted increase of agricultural and urban land by decreasing mainly forest land will lead till 2035 to an increase of 2.33% in surface runoff and a decline in ground water flow, lateral flow, and evapotranspiration. Between 2035 and 2050, a gradual increase of grass land and range land could mitigate the undesired tendency. The applied combination of LULC prognosis with process-based hydrologic modeling provide valuable data about the current and future understanding of variation in hydrological parameters and assist concerned bodies to improve land and water management in formulating approaches to minimize the conceivable increment of surface runoff.

A global analysis of agricultural productivity and water resource consumption changes over cropland expansion regions

Cropland expansion often occurs on grasslands and partial forests. However, there is little quantified understanding of how cropland expansion affected the agricultural productivity and water resource consumption globally. In this study, we used spatially explicit satellite-based data, including land use maps, net primary productivity and evapotranspiration from 2001 to 2018, and the space-for-time substitution technique to investigate the relationships between cropland expansion and agricultural productivity and water resource consumption. Results showed that global cropland area presented a significant net increasing trend with 1.9 × 104 km2/a (p < 0.01) since 2000. Net increased cropland area over the Northern Hemisphere and the Southern Hemisphere occupied 27.1% and 72.9% of global total net increase, respectively. Large-area cropland expansion mainly focused on Eastern Asia, Southern Asia, Eastern Europe, Southern America, and Northern America. Particularly, cropland expansion in the Southern America deserved the greatest attention. At the global scale, new expanded croplands caused average NPP decrease and average ET decrease compared to original ecosystems, but performances were evident differences in subregions. Cropland expansion in the Southern America evidently decreased NPP and ET compared to other places. In contrast, new expanded croplands in most subregions of Asia and Northern America performed higher the agriculture productivity, while the increases were done at the expense of more water resource consumption. Although cropland expansion only slightly decreased NPP compared to original ecosystems globally, new expanded croplands often occurred in water-limited or temperature-limited areas according to precipitation and temperature gradations. This study suggests that cropland expansion should more consider sustainable land use and development, and reduce the risks of cropland expansion on natural ecosystems as much as possible.

Evaluating Sustainable Development of Land Resources in the Yangtze River Economic Belt of China

The Yangtze River Economic Belt (YREB) is one of the most economically active regions in China, where an imbalance between the demand for land and the non-renewable is increasingly prominent. We present the patterns of land use in the YREB, then construct an evaluation index based on the Pressure-State-Response model. The TOPSIS model is used to evaluate sustainable land development in the YREB, and the spatial deductive characteristics of sustainable development levels are analyzed using three aspects: global spatial correlation, local spatial correlation, and regional difference. The results about the YREB show that: (1) The comprehensive sustainable land development score is average, indicating moderate sustainability with a fluctuating upward trend and good prospects. (2) The sustainable development levels of land have strong positive spatial correlation and agglomeration; the agglomeration characteristics follow a pattern similar to that of the status of economic development. (3) Sustainable development levels of land in the provinces and cities show great spatial differences.

Soil water carrying capacity for vegetation

AbstractNonnative plantations can effectively conserve soil and water and improve the ecology and environment, but soil desiccation can occur and may become severe in forest and grass lands in water‐limited regions, leading to soil degradation, vegetation decline, and crop failure. Therefore, it is necessary to regulate the changing relationship between plant growth and soil water. However, there is no universally accepted theory to provide guidance in the sustainable use of soil water resources, management of forests, and production of crops in such regions. The regulation of the relationship between plant growth and soil water in water‐limited regions can be expressed by the soil water resources use limit by plant (SWRULP) and soil water carrying capacity for vegetation (SWCCV) indexes. The SWCCV is the population in a plant population or density of indicator plants in a plant community when the soil water supply is equal to soil water consumption in the root zone at a given time, and changes with plant community type, location, and time. For example, the SWRULP in caragana shrubland is 222.8 and the SWCCV is 71 bushes per 100 m2 in the semiarid region. The degree of coverage, productivity, and benefits of a plant community when the population quantity of an indicator plant equals the SWCCV provides the theoretical basis for ensuring the sustainable use of soil water resources and sustainable development of forest land.

Modelling and Accessing Land Degradation Vulnerability using Remote Sensing Techniques and the Analytical Hierarchy Process Approach

Land degradation and desertification have recently become a critical problem in Ethiopia. Accordingly, identification of land degradation vulnerable zonation and mapping was conducted in Wabe Shebele River Basin, Ethiopia. Precipitation derived from Global Precipitation Measurement Mission (GMP), the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) Normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) and land surface temperature (LST), topography (slope), and pedological properties (i.e., soil depth, soil pH, soil texture, and soil drainage) were used in the current study. NDVI has been considered as the most significant parameter followed by the slope, precipitation and temperature. Geospatial techniques and the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) approach were used to model the land degradation vulnerable index. Validation of the results with google earth image shows the applicability of the model in the study. The result is classified into very highly vulnerable (17.06%), highly vulnerable (15.01%), moderately vulnerable (32.72%), slightly vulnerable (16.40%), and very slightly vulnerable (18.81%) to land degradation. Due to the small rate of precipitation which is vulnerable to evaporation by high temperature in the region, the downstream section of the basis is categorized as highly vulnerable to Land Degradation (LD) and vice versa in the upstream section of the basin. Moreover, the validation using the Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curve analysis shows an area under the ROC curve value of 80.92% which approves the prediction accuracy of the AHP method in assessing and modelling LD vulnerability zone in the study area. The study provides a substantial understanding of the effect of land degradation on sustainable land use management and development in the basin.

Temporal dynamics change of land use/land cover in Jhansi district of Uttar Pradesh over past 20 years using LANDSAT TM, ETM+ and OLI sensors

Mapping and monitoring land use land cover (LULC) dynamics is vital for sustainable land development, planning and management. Using advanced techniques of remote sensing (RS) and geographic information system (GIS), the present study is an effort to monitor the changes in LULC patterns of Jhansi District of Uttar Pradesh for the periods 2000–2010 and 2010–2020. Satellite images from Landsat-5 Thematic Mapper (TM) for 2001; Landsat-7 Enhanced Thematic Mapper (ETM+) for 2010 and Landsat 8 (OLI) for 2020 were used to extract Land use/Land cover classes. Supervised classification using Maximum Likelihood Classifier (MLC) was applied to monitor LULC of the study area. Six major LULC classes viz; cropland, fallow/barren land, built-up area, water bodies and forest have been identified and showed that major land use in the district is crop land. The accuracy assessment of the classified map was done using 256 random points distributed all over the image. Results indicated that LULC in Jhansi district has undergone a series of changes over the past two decades. Results showed that crop land, built-up area and water bodies have increased by 27.16% (1367.26 Km2), 0.58% (29.4 Km2) and 0.3% (15.26 Km2), respectively while fallow/barren land and forest have decreased by27.55% (1386.58 Km2), and 0.5% (25.34 Km2), respectively. The research revealed that substantial shift from fallow/barren land (27.55%) into crop land. The analysis and findings of this study facilitate researchers, policy makers, land use planners and managers to implement the appropriate land-use management plan for Jhansi district.

Is land nationalization more conducive to sustainable development of cultivated land and food security than land privatization in post-socialist Central Asia?

The impact of policies on cultivated land and food security has received global attention, especially in Central Asia, which underwent drastic transformations in land policies during the post-socialist era. Therefore, this study focused on the impacts of policies on the quantity and quality of cultivated land and food security in Central Asia from 1992 to 2015. The results showed that although different land policy reforms were implemented by five Central Asian countries, the cultivated land areas tended to be stable after 2010. The cultivated land increased by approximately 7.02 × 104 km2 in Central Asia. After 2000, cultivated land slowly increased and the degree of land degradation rapidly decreased, illustrating that the turning point for the quantity and quality of cultivated land change caused by these policies occurred in 2000. In addition, changes in cotton and grain cultivation occurred in response to the policies of Central Asian countries. Grain per capita increased in land nationalization countries, whereas it decreased in land privatization countries. Thus, driven by policies, the cultivated land use mode in Central Asia was gradually replacing the mode used by the Soviet Union and has been moving toward sustainable development. Some Central Asian countries, however, still face food insecurity.

The Spatial Effect of Administrative Division on Land-Use Intensity

Land-use intensity (LUI) is one of the most direct manifestations of regional land use efficiency. The study of cross-administrative LUI in urban agglomerations is of great importance for the sustainable development of land, new urbanization, and territorial spatial planning. In this study, the urban agglomeration in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River in China was used as the case study area to explore the spatial spillover effect through the administrative division, underlying driving mechanism, and spatial interactions or constraints of LUI. First, LUI was measured using the index of the proportion of construction land to the total area of the administrative region. Second, the adjacency relationship of the county-level administrative units was identified on the basis of the queen-type adjacency criterion under the county-level administrative division system. Thereafter, spatial weight matrix for spatial modeling was constructed. Last, a spatial model using the “Spatial adjacency matrix” was devised to examine the influencing factors and the potential spatial interactions or constraints of administrative units. Results revealed that the level of LUI of different county-level administrative units were quite different, and the gap of LUI among county-level administrative units widened from 2010 to 2017. The fixed asset investment per land (FAIL), gross domestic product per capital (PGDP), and proportion of tertiary sector (PTS) are the driving factors of LUI. County-level administrative units not only had a significant and increasing spatial interaction effect based on the relationship of cooperation, but also had an influence of restraint mutually which was caused by the competition. The direct spatial spillover effect was remarkable. In the future, the effect of interaction among administrative units under the administrative division should be considered to promote the reasonable use and optimal layout of regional urban land to realize the optimal allocation of land resources.

Pattern Recognition and Remote Sensing techniques applied to Land Use and Land Cover mapping in the Brazilian Savannah

• The Cerrado biome is highly complex in terms of LULC patterns rendering classification a big challenge. • Time series analysis and phenological metrics arise as valuable assets to perform LULC mapping. • Contextual information is a key factor to accurately classify vegetation and deforestation in the Cerrado. • We provide frameworks to integrate machine learning and image processing to perform LULC analysis The Brazilian Savannah, or Cerrado, has gained vital importance in the discussions about sustainable land development after the conversion of half of its natural vegetation. For the last two decades, most of the agricultural expansion in Brazil has occurred in this biome. This is related to technological improvements in agriculture as well as to environmental compliance policies that have effectively reduced soybean expansion in the Brazilian Amazon biome. Therefore, remotely sensed imagery, pattern recognition and image processing techniques have been employed to analyze and monitor the land dynamics over Cerrado. In this work, we present a brief review on Land Use and Land Cover mapping (LULC) in the Cerrado biome from an application perspective: natural vegetation, pastureland, agriculture, and deforestation. In this review we selected some studies whose results could contribute to the development of more detailed and accurate LULC maps for the Cerrado biome.

Simulation of Soil Water Dynamics in a Black Locust Plantation on the Loess Plateau, Western Shanxi Province, China

Soil moisture plays an important role in vegetation restoration and ecosystem rehabilitation in fragile regions. Therefore, understanding the soil water dynamics and water budget in soil is a key target for vegetation restoration and watershed management. In this study, to quantitatively estimate the water budget of the GFGP forests in a dry year and a wet year and to explore the recharge in deep profiles, the vertical and temporal soil moisture variations in a black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia) plantation were simulated under typical rainfall events and two-year cycles in a loess area between April 2014 and March 2016. We calibrated and tested the HYDRUS-1D (Salinity Laboratory of the USDA, California, USA) model using the data collected during in situ field observations. The model’s performance was satisfactory, the R2, Nash efficiency coefficient (NSE), root mean square error (RMSE), and mean absolute error (MAE) were 0.82, 0.80, 0.021, and 0.030, respectively. For the four rainfall events of 9.1 mm, 25 mm, 71.1 mm, and 123.6 mm, the infiltration amounts were 8.1 mm, 19.3 mm, 65.2 mm, and 95.3 mm, respectively. Moreover, the maximum infiltration depths were 30 cm, 100 cm, 160 cm, and &gt;200 cm, respectively. Additionally, in the two-year model cycles, the upward average water flux was 1.4 mm/d and the downward water flux was 1.69 mm/d in the first-year cycle; the upward average annual water flux was 1.0 mm/d and the downward water flux was 1.1 mm/d in the second-year cycle. The annual water consumption amounts in the two-year cycles were 524.6 mm and 374.2 mm, and the annual replenishment amounts were 616.8 mm and 401 mm. The amounts of percolation that recharged the deep soil were only 28.1 mm and 2.04 mm. A lower annual rainfall would cause a water deficit in the deep soil, which was not conducive to the growth of Robinia pseudoacacia vegetation. To ensure the high-quality sustainable development of the forest land, it is suggested to adjust the stand density in a timely manner and to implement horizontal terraces to increase the infiltration and supply of precipitation. Our study provides an improved understanding of the soil water movement in Robinia pseudoacacia plantations and a simulated temporal moisture variation under different time scales. The results of our study provide a feasible approach for the sustainable management of Robinia pseudoacacia plantations during vegetation restoration.

Protection of Halophytes and Their Uses for Cultivation of Saline-Alkali Soil in China.

Simple SummaryOver 800 million hectares of arable lands are affected by salinity worldwide. All crops cannot grow in saline-alkali soils due to high salt content. However, halophytes are a special category of plants that grow in saline soils. Halophytes have potential economic value as grain, vegetable, fruit, medicine, animal feed, biofuel feedstocks, and in greening and coastal protection. These also provide possible directions for the development of saline-alkali land. In addition, we are also concerned about the coordinated and sustainable development of the protection and utilization of halophytes.Over 800 million hectares of arable lands are affected by salinity in the world. In China, saline-alkali soils account for 25% of farmland and are underutilized. One sustainable strategy to make better use of saline land is to plant halophytes, salt-tolerant plants that can survive and complete their life cycle in media containing more than 200 mM NaCl. Halophytes have potential economic value as grain, vegetable, fruit, medicine, animal feed, and biofuel feedstocks, and in greening and coastal protection. Therefore, the cultivation and protection of halophytes is very important. In the past few decades, a lot of work has been done on the protection and utilization of halophytes in saline soil improvement and development worldwide. This article focuses on the distribution of saline-alkali conditions and current measures to protect halophytes, as well as the application of halophytes in the sustainable development of saline-alkali land. This information is helpful for protection and utilization of halophytes in the sustainable development of saline land worldwide.

Assessment of urban thermal field variance index and defining the relationship between land cover and surface temperature in Chattogram city: A remote sensing and statistical approach

Land Cover (LC) is going through a dramatic change due to rapid urbanization, especially in urban areas. The impervious land covers (built-up areas) are replacing the natural land covers (vegetation and waterbody) rapidly, which significantly contributes to the increase of Land Surface Temperature (LST). Increased LST deteriorates the meteorological condition in urban areas and causes Surface Urban Heat Island (SUHI) effect. The vulnerability of the SUHI effect can be described quantitatively and qualitatively by Urban Thermal Field Variance Index (UTFVI) phenomenon. The study investigates the changing pattern of the SUHI and its magnitude with Landsat TM/OLI time-series satellite imageries from 1988 to 2018 and establishes the relationship between LC change and LST variations in Chattogram city. The relationships are defined by correlation analysis, cross-section profiles, and Simple Linear Regression Models (SLRM). The results suggest that vegetation cover, water body, and bare-soil have decreased by 2%, 7%, and 10%, respectively, where the built-up area has increased by 19% in the study area during the study period. The average LST of the study area has increased by approximately 10 °C in the last 30 years. Weightage of the SUHI affected area has also increased over time due to its direct linkage with LST. No area was affected by the SUHI phenomenon in 1988, which was found more than 35% in 2018. Only 1.69% area was found under the strongest UTFVI phenomenon in 1988, which increased significantly by 27.53% in 2018. In statistical analysis, regression models are used to define LC and LST relationship for every LC type. The LC and LST relationship analyses demonstrate a significant positive correlation with the built-up area while it is negative with vegetation, waterbody, and bare soil. The findings of this study will help city officials and policymakers to prepare a sustainable urban land development plan to minimize the negative consequences of unplanned urbanization and heat stress-related issues.

Monitoring Environmental Changes and Their Drivers: The Case Study of Central Ethiopian Highlands

The central Ethiopian highlands, which are attracting massive population influx from the surrounding areas, are being subjected to myriad environmental changes and impacts thereof. Hence, an in-depth understanding of the statuses, and trends of the environmental resources on the highland is critical. This study used archived remotely sensed Landsat data to produced Land Use and Land Cover maps of the highlands and changes over 32 years (1985 – 2017). The Hybrid Maximum Likelihood Algorithm and image segmentation techniques; and Land Change Modeler were deployed. Accordingly, Agricultural lands, Grass/Bare lands, Lakes/Ponds, Scrublands, Settlement/Urban areas, Vegetation areas, and Wetlands were detected and mapped. Overall mapping accuracies and kappa statistics ranged between 84% - 87.6% and 95.7% - 94.4%, respectively. Agriculture is the dominant Land Use and Land Cover type throughout, though the compositions of the remaining Land Use and Land Cover types have changed since 1985; except for Lakes/Ponds, and Wetlands. Settlement/Urban areas have grown by 546%, at the expense of agricultural lands and vegetation areas, a condition that is exposing farmers to the loss of massive cropland and woodlands. Additionally, Agricultural lands have changed into Grass/Bare lands and Scrublands, as shreds of evidence of the environmental impacts of the rapid urbanization. Therefore, with an anticipated growing population and urban expansion on the highland, it is essential to promote practices of sustainable land resource management and development in the region.

Land space simulation of urban agglomerations from the perspective of the symbiosis of urban development and ecological protection: A case study of Changsha-Zhuzhou-Xiangtan urban agglomeration

Simulation of future land space changes in urban agglomerations is a powerful means to optimize regional spatial structure and improve human well-being. This study highlights the equilibrium between urban development and ecological protection and introduces ecological impact coefficient and land use protection coefficient to measure the degree of sustainable land development. The system dynamic model was used to simulate the dynamics of urban development space, ecological space, and urban agricultural space in the Changsha-Zhuzhou-Xiangtan urban agglomeration from 2019 to 2035. Four development scenarios were used in the simulation, namely, status-quo, economic-centric, environment-centric, and coordinated equilibrium. Simulation results show that for the year 2035, urban development space scale would increase by 678.91 km2 under the status quo, increase by 870.12 km2 under the economic-centric scenario, increase by 740.98 km2 under an environment-centric setting, and increase by 775.54 km2 with coordinated equilibrium. The various scenarios would have significant differences in ecological impact and land use protection coefficients, with the environment-centric scenario yielding the highest values for these indicators. The approach presented in this study shows that the needs for urban development can be achieved while also protecting ecological and urban agricultural spaces and that allocation of production, living, and ecological spaces can be optimized using multi-scenario simulation. The development of ecological impact coefficients and land use protection coefficients, as well as the use of different development scenarios, can be used as reference for the more efficient use of land resources areas and the formulation of land-use and spatial planning.

Prioritization of water erosion–prone sub-watersheds using three ensemble methods in Qareaghaj catchment, southern Iran

Water-induced erosion poses severe harm to the sustainable development of land and water resources that is essential for attaining agricultural sustainability in Qareaghaj catchment of Fars Province, Iran. This study evaluates the topo-hydrological, morphometric, climatic, and environmental characteristics of Qareaghaj catchment for prioritizing the sub-watersheds that are susceptible to erosion caused by water. We tested and compared a novel ensemble multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) model, namely the weighted aggregated sum product assessment-analytical hierarchy process (WASPAS-AHP) with prevailing benchmark ensemble MCDM models including VlseKriterijumska optimizacija I Kompromisno Resenje (VIKOR)-AHP and Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS)-AHP for ranking sub-watersheds and determining the most significant parameter that influences water erosion (WE) in Qareaghaj catchment. The outcome of weights using pairwise comparison matrix (PCM) of AHP reveals that normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), mean annual rainfall (MAR), slope degree (SD), and slope length and steepness factor (LS) governs the WE in Qareaghaj catchment. The prioritization rankings of sub-watersheds obtained using the VIKOR-AHP, TOPSIS-AHP, and WASPAS-AHP models demonstrate that SW31, SW63, and SW94 had the highest priority rank with a score of 0.047, 0.69, and 0.477, respectively. The comparison of rankings from the models using Spearman's correlation coefficient tests (SCCT) and Kendall's tau correlation coefficient tests (KTCCT) revealed that WASPAS-AHP had a higher correlation with TOPSIS-AHP and VIKOR-AHP ensemble models. The outcome of MCDM models was validated based on the erosion potential method (EPM), which displayed that the VIKOR-AHP model was better for mapping the erosion susceptibility than TOPSIS-AHP and WASPAS-AHP models. Thus, the erosion susceptibility mapping based on the VIKOR-AHP ensemble model can be considered for developing new strategies and land use policies in order to control WE in Qareaghaj catchment.

A Game Analysis of Farmland Expropriation Conflict in China under Multi-Dimensional Preference: Cooperation or Resistance?

The process of urbanization in China has been accompanied by the conflict of land expropriation, which is not conducive to social stability. Different from the previous angles and methods of studying the conflict of agricultural land expropriation, this study puts forward a new behavioral perspective on the basis of game theory, and constructs an evolutionary game model of the conflict of agricultural land expropriation in China from the perspective of multi-dimensional preference. It also discusses the impact of different preference combinations on the conflict input, net income and utility of various stakeholders in agricultural land expropriation. The results show that under the influence of complete self-interest preference, the degree of protection of farmers’ land rights and interests affects the probability of conflicts in compensation for agricultural land expropriation. However, under the influence of multi-dimensional preference combination, agricultural land expropriation can be carried out smoothly only when the reciprocal altruism preference of local government and farmers is strong and the loss aversion preference is weak. These insights have implications for the sustainable development of land, including government involvement and farmers participation, particularly in the context of developing countries.

Vulnerability to watershed erosion and coastal deposition in the tropics

Over half of the global population is projected to live in the tropics by 2050. Sustainable land development will be challenged by enhanced sediment erosion and deposition, which can negatively impact water quality and ecosystem services in inland and coastal waterways. Existing erosion assessments treat watersheds and coastal zones separately, but we connect them in a two-part vulnerability index to watershed erosion and coastal deposition at 0.0004° (~ 45 m) resolution throughout the tropics. We use open-source datasets and a simple, GIS-based method geared toward tropical, novice end-users. Part 1 of the index reveals a majority of the tropics is vulnerable to erosion. Vulnerability is highest where there are co-occurrences of earthquakes, steep slopes, and high precipitation such as the Caribbean and Southeast Asia. In Part 2, we assess erosion vulnerability at 4 watersheds and include their coastal systems, which can enhance or diminish vulnerability of the entire system to coastal deposition.

Sustainable Intensification of Cultivated Land Use and Its Influencing Factors at the Farming Household Scale: A Case Study of Shandong Province, China

Promoting the sustainable intensification of cultivated land use (SICL) has become crucial for ensuring a sufficient supply of grain and important agricultural products, as well as for the sustainable use of resources. Taking widely used areas of Shandong Province in China as examples, an analytical scale and level framework for SICL is constructed in this study. It measures the level of SICL through material flow analysis, constructs Tobit models to analyze the influencing factors of SICL at the farming household scale, and analyzes the transition mechanisms of SICL. The results show that the overall level of SICL in Shandong Province is low, and the spatial distribution is uneven. There are relatively more farmers participating in unsustainable intensification than in medium or low levels of SICL, with farmers working at a high level of SICL making up the smallest proportion. The factors that determine the level of SICL at which farmers work vary significantly. More male farmers operate at a low SICL level than female farmers, while females outnumber males at a high SICL level. This is mainly related to the regional distribution of age and population. Meanwhile, with larger cultivated land areas, there is a lower degree of land fragmentation, with a higher level of SICL corresponding to a smaller distance to the nearest town closer within 1–5 km from the town center. We can see the level of SICL and its processes themselves are closely related to time and space scales. Based on the above analysis, it is necessary to clarify the standard processes of SICL to adapt them to local conditions. This includes instructing managers on how to improve resource utilization, increase the sustainable development of cultivated land and establish a comprehensively efficient and functional SICL mechanism. The sustainable intensification of cultivated land use and its specific application in the new era are conducive to enriching the frontier theories and methodology of sustainable development, and are of great significance to the advancement of green agriculture and the decision-making of rural high-quality development.

Retracted] Optimization and Simulation of Farmland Protection Dynamic Monitoring System Based on Internet of Things Technology

Based on the status quo of cultivated land, this paper analyzes the existing problems and builds a dynamic monitoring system for cultivated land protection. It works by using the Internet of Things technology and geographic and national conditions to realize the systematization, informatization, and socialization of cultivated land protection, thereby promoting the sustainable development of cultivated land and social stability and harmony. This paper puts forward relevant countermeasures and suggestions for the protection of cultivated land. This paper constructs the farmland protection dynamic monitoring system, proposes the goals of the system construction, points out the ideas of the system construction, and designs and analyzes the key points of the system composition. The system includes seven subsystems, and the functions and specific contents of the subsystems are explained, respectively, to build the entire system. Then, we put forward the financial, technical, and implementation problems of the system, and find out countermeasures, expand the system research, propose the development of the dynamic monitoring system of cultivated land protection in the direction of intelligence and convenience, and expand the application to food safety and disasters. In terms of forecasting, comprehensive evaluation of the existence and operation of the system is carried out by designing evaluation indicators and weights for the operation of the system.